Bo Xilai did 'massive harm' to China's Communist Party, say officials (+video)

Bo Xilai, the disgraced Chinese politician facing prison time in a scandal involving the murder of a British businessman, has been expelled from the Communist Party, which is undergoing a once-in-a-decade generational transition of power.

By Chris Buckley,?Reuters, Ben Blanchard,?Reuters / September 28, 2012

In this March 9 file photo, Bo Xilai reacts during a plenary session of the National People's Congress held in Beijing.

Ng Han Guan/AP/File

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China's ruling Communist Party accused disgraced politician Bo Xilai of abusing power, taking huge bribes and other crimes on Friday, sealing the fate of a controversial leader whose fall shook a leadership handover due at a congress from Nov. 8.

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In this video taken in April, CBS news correspondent Barry Peterson talks about the man in the center of a scandal that erupted in Beijing this spring.

The once high-flying Bo now faces a criminal investigation that stemmed from a murder scandal, and will almost certainly be jailed. With the Communist Party congress about six weeks away, further steps in the case could come before then, helping pave the way for a transition of power, experts said.

"Bo Xilai's actions created grave repercussions and did massive harm to the reputation of the party and state, producing an extremely malign effect at home and abroad," the official statement from a party leaders' meeting said, according to a report by the official Xinhua news agency.

Bo's wife Gu Kailai and his former police chief Wang Lijun have already been jailed over the scandal stemming from the murder of British businessman Neil Heywood in the southwestern municipality of Chongqing, where Bo was Communist Party chief.

The official statement carried by Xinhua said that in the murder scandal, Bo "abused his powers of office, committed serious errors and bears a major responsibility".

That charge appears to reflect accusations from Wang's trial that suggested Bo tried to stymie the murder investigation.

Reports that Bo, the "princeling" son of a revolutionary leader, could escape with a light punishment have now been dealt a fatal blow, and accusations of womanising could further tarnish his reputation in the eyes of Chinese people.

But the few weeks left before the congress will probably not allow time for a trial, said He Weifang, a law professor at Peking University who has closely followed Bo's downfall.

"I think it's quite certain that he won't be able to escape punishment under the criminal law, but the timing makes it unlikely that will happen before the congress," said He.

"I'd guess that he'll get a jail sentence of 20 years or longer. The death penalty is unlikely, although the bribery charges could in theory allow it, if the amount is as huge as they say."

At the congress, Chinese President Hu Jintao will step down as party chief, almost certainly making way for Vice President Xi Jinping to emerge as top leader. Xi is then almost sure to be appointed state president at the annual parliament session, likely in March next year.

Warning to heed example

Bo, 63, has been expelled from the party as well as the elite decision-making Politburo and Central Committee "in view of his errors and culpability in the Wang Lijun incident and the intentional homicide case involving Bogu Kailai", said the party announcement.

Bogu is his wife's official but rarely used surname.

Bo's "grave violations of party discipline" extended back to his time as an official in Dalian city and Liaoning province in northeast China, and as minister of commerce, said the statement from the Politburo.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/vS9aieSndqk/Bo-Xilai-did-massive-harm-to-China-s-Communist-Party-say-officials-video

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Why Doesn't Obama Take More Of An Interest In Golf?

Why Doesn't Obama Take More Of An Interest In Golf?

I mean this seriously. He has played over a hundred rounds of golf since his swearing in. That's a lot of golf. Yet, he doesn't appear to be a fan of golf at all. This is odd for someone that plays as often as he does.

Bill Clinton was famous for his love of watching and attending PGA events. Buzz Patterson's book Dereliction of Duty describes some of this, ahem, passion.

I approached President Clinton on three occasions at this golf tournament, Roger, to ask him for the go-ahead to launch this attack. We had Air Force fighters in the air, ready to drop bombs and to repel Saddams forces, and on three occasions, President Clinton could not be bothered to take the phone call from Sandy Berger. So, on three occasions I approached the President, he brushed me offhe wanted to watch the golf tournament. So I saw, really, for the first time, the dereliction of duty, as it were, by President Clinton not being ablenot being willing to take the phone call while thousands and thousands of Kurds were being slaughtered by Saddam Hussein.

Both Bushes were big golf fans as well. As I watch the Ryder Cup this weekend, I am reminded of this story:

Entering the final day, the Americans were four points down, a huge margin to make up. But they had been given a pep talk by the then Governor of Texas, George W Bush, who had read out the no surrender address from the Battle of the Alamo. It was so belligerent that David Duval stormed out of the locker room shouting, Lets go out and kill them. The Americans duly staged an almighty comeback and it all came down to the 17th green. The US player Justin Leonard nailed a monster 45ft putt, which prompted his team-mates, their wives and caddies to rush on to the green and high-five each other, dressed in their ludicrous maroon uniforms that made them look like they worked at a cut-price pizza joint. They had forgotten that Jos Maria Olazbal, the Spaniard, had yet to finish his game. Olazbal, looking flustered, missed his putt and America won the Ryder Cup.

Talk to any of your friends or family that golf frequently, and I can assure you they are watching or paying attention to the Ryder Cup. This is hardly some game-changing issue. It's just... very odd. Posted by: JohnE. at 11:38 AM

Source: http://minx.cc/?post=333321

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Picture Collage Maker Pro 3

You can make collages out of your digital photos for free using Windows Photo Gallery or Picasa, so why would you download a whole app just for this activity? Because Picture Collage Maker Pro ($39.90) goes far beyond those free apps with a wealth of templates, clip art, frames, and backgrounds to help you produce something really unique and impressive. A free 15-day trial version is available, and a Mac version of the non-Pro version costs $29.90 and commercial single-user licenses run $30 more for each.

Interface
Picture Collage's interface feels a bit dated, but it's very functional, flexible, and a pleasure to work in. Drag-and-drop is supported wherever you'd want it, as is live resizing and rotating of any objects in your design by dragging on controls. When you first run Picture Collage Maker, a small dialog box presents you with four button options: Create Blank Collage, Template Collage Wizard, Create From Template, and Grid Collage Wizard.

To start with, I chose Blank. The next step is to choose dimensions, resolution (DPI), and orientation for your collage. You can choose from 18 commonly needed preset sizes or just enter your own custom dimensions. Next you're taken to the main interface, with its three panel view for your document in the center, a left panel for templates, backgrounds, photos, masks, frames, clipart and shapes, and a right-panel for page and layer navigation. Along the top is a tool button bar for standard file actions like new, open, save, along with more design-oriented choices like Template, Collage, Add photos, Share (or print), and Wizard. You can customize all the program's panels and toolbars, including just what you need.

The template collage wizard is the easiest way to set about creating your memory document. You start by adding photos from your hard drive or connected memory media?you can even add a whole folder at once. Then you choose a template: there are 117 templates in four categories, including calendars, greeting cards, layouts (photo jumbles and grids), and photo albums. You can also download more templates, or create your own. After choosing a template, you simply hit Finish.

All the control you get with arranging your visual creation comes in at this point. You can change the background and add frames, clipart, or shapes. There's a generous selection of frame styles?138 in all, including classic old-picture style frames, wood, and hanging postcard styles. The 114 backgrounds range from wallpaper to textures to greeting card styles, and you can use your own image if you like. But there's no option to melt the photos together with feathered edges the way you can with Windows Photo Gallery, and no Polaroid borders like those in Picasa.

Generous, too are the 151 clip art choices, with speech bubbles, numbers and letters, cartoon objects, flowers, and holiday imagery. Shapes include arrows, lines, rectangles, circles, hexagons, and crosses. These can all be stretched and transformed to taste, using control points.

Text options are there but somewhat limited. You can add text from fonts on your system, resize it, stretch it, and rotate it. You can even add a drop shadow. But there's no stroke feature to highlight characters, and you can't wrap text around a curve, the way you can in Photoshop Elements. Picture Collage Maker's text also isn't WYSIWYG?you can't type on the collage, just in a text dialog box.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ziffdavis/pcmag/~3/pYf7HThl210/0,2817,2410250,00.asp

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Google gives users an easy out, adds YouTube to Takeout data transfer tool

Breaking up with a web-based ecosystem is hard to do, especially when you have several gigabytes of data invested in a specific platform. However, things just got a whole lot easier for disgruntled vloggers. Google recently added YouTube to its Takeout data migration service, which now gives users the ability to pull all of their uploaded videos from the company's servers in a single stroke. This groovy tool should definitely come in handy when you're busy shopping around your latest foreign film to different movie studios. In addition to being extremely easy to use, the service will also send an email letting you know that your download has finished. Simply set it and forget it!

Filed under: Storage, Internet

Google gives users an easy out, adds YouTube to Takeout data transfer tool originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 28 Sep 2012 03:07:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink 9to5Google  |  Google Data Liberation Blog  | Email this | Comments

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/09/28/google-adds-youtube-to-takeout-data-transfer-tool/

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NBC's Ali Arouzi answers reader questions from Iran - World News

While Iran?s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu traded verbal jabs at the United Nations General Assembly this week over the threat of Iran?s nuclear capability, one thing is for sure: international economic sanctions against Iran are having an impact.?

The United States, European Union and the U.N. have imposed tough economic sanctions against Iran, blocking access to the international banking system and curbing sales of Iranian crude oil as a way to persuade Tehran to abandon its nuclear program.

As Ali Arouzi, NBC News Tehran Correspondent, reports today, the sanctions have had a real impact on Iranians as the value of their currency, the rial, continues to drop daily ? affecting everything from basic food items to manufacturing.

Iranian: 'Our money is becoming more and more worthless every day'

Ali answered reader questions about the impact of the sanctions in Iran earlier today.

REPLAY the informative chat below.?

Source: http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/09/28/14139759-nbcs-ali-arouzi-answers-reader-questions-from-iran

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CSN: Is Harper the best teen in MLB history?

September 27, 2012, 12:06 pm

PHILADELPHIA -- If it seems like Bryce Harper is accomplishing something every couple of days few, if any, teenagers have ever accomplished ... well, it's true.

Just about every positive thing Harper has done on the field in the last couple of weeks has carried the 19-year-old over a new threshold, further cemented his status as one of the best players in his age group ever to perform in the major leagues.

And Harper was up to his old tricks again last night during the Nationals' 8-4 win over the Phillies. Let's recap...

With his first-inning blast into the stands in deep left-center, Harper recorded his 20th home run. The only teenager ever to hit more, of course, was Tony Conigliaro for the 1964 Red Sox.

Asked about getting No. 20, Harper responded: "I like those 93 runs a lot better."

Ah, yes. By crossing the plate on his home run trot, Harper recorded his 93rd run of the season. The only teenager ever to score more runs: Buddy Lewis of the 1936 Senators, who finished with 100.

So, would reaching the century mark in runs scored mean something for Harper?

"Absolutely," he said. "Being on base for all the guys to drive me in, just being key in that respect and getting the momentum going early, doing things on the basepaths, I think that's huge."

Harper obviously takes a lot of pride in his baserunning, so surely he was fired up to notch his 17th stolen base last night. That makes him the first teenager ever in the 17-17 Club (17 homers, 17 steals). Three more stolen bases over the season's final seven games, and Harper obviously would become the first-ever teenager in the 20-20 club.

Pretty amazing stuff, right?

"No, nothing really amazes me with him," teammate Ian Desmond said. "Regardless of all the home runs, the great throws, things like that, he impacts the baseball game every single day, whether it's on the basepaths, everything. Nothing surprises me with him. I think he's got the brightest future, and he's a good kid. That makes it so much better."

Tags: mlb, philadelphia Phillies, Washington Nationals, nationals, nats, mark zuckerman, bryce harper

Source: http://www.csnwashington.com/baseball-washington-nationals/nationals-talk/More-milestones-for-Harper?blockID=780039&feedID=6458

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Unusual Indian Ocean Earthquakes Hit at Tectonic Breakup

April 2012 quakes occurred away from plate edges, suggesting formation of a new boundary

By Helen Shen

At least four faults within the Indo-Australian plate ruptured simultaneously in April 2012, resulting in two magnitude-8 earthquakes within two hours. (Red stars indicate the epicentres.) Image: Keith Koper, University of Utah Seismograph Stations

• 

  Showcasing more than fifty of the most provocative, original, and significant online essays from 2011, The Best Science Writing Online 2012 will change the way...

  Read More??

By Helen Shen of Nature magazine

A pair of massive earthquakes that rocked the Indian Ocean on 11 April 2012 may signal the latest step in the formation of a new plate boundary within Earth?s surface.

Geological stresses rending the Indo-Australian plate apart are likely to have caused the magnitude-8.6 and magnitude-8.2 quakes, which broke along numerous faults and unleashed aftershocks for 6 days afterwards, according to three papers published online today in Nature.

Seismologists have suspected since the 1980s that the Indo-Australian plate may be breaking up. But the 11 April earthquakes represent ?the most spectacular example? of that process in action, says Matthias Delescluse, a geophysicist at the Ecole Normale Sup?rieure in Paris and lead author of the first paper. Worldwide, ?it?s the clearest example of newly formed plate boundaries,? he says.

According to prevailing theories of plate tectonics, the Indo-Australian plate began to deform internally about 10 million years ago. As the plate moved northwards, the region near India crunched against the Eurasian plate, thrusting the Himalayas up and slowing India down. Most scientists think that the Australian portion forged ahead, creating twisting tensions that are splitting the plate apart in the Indian Ocean.

Delescluse and his team inferred the presence of these seismic stresses by modeling stress changes from shortly before the 2012 earthquakes. They found that two earlier earthquakes along the eastern plate boundary ? the magnitude-9.1 tremor in 2004 that unleashed a massive tsunami across the Indian Ocean, and another quake in 2005 ? probably triggered the 2012 event by adding to pent-up stresses in the plate?s middle region.

Gregory Beroza, a seismologist at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California, says that the model is a likely explanation. ?The 2004 and 2005 earthquakes by themselves would not have caused this other earthquake. There had to be other stresses,? he says.
Slip-sliding away

Most large earthquakes occur when two plates collide at their boundaries, and one plate slides beneath the other. By contrast, when plates or portions of plates slip horizontally along a fault line, this usually results in smaller, 'strike-slip' earthquakes.

However, the first 11 April event defied expectations as the largest strike-slip earthquake on record, and one of the strongest to occur away from any conventional plate boundaries.

In the second study, researchers found that the accumulated stresses spread over the plate?s interior broke free in the first 11 April event, resulting in one of the most complex fault patterns ever observed. Unlike most earthquakes that shake along a single fault, this one ruptured along four faults, one of which slipped as much as 20?30 meters.

?This earthquake, it was a ?gee whiz?,? says study author Thorne Lay, a seismologist at the University of California, Santa Cruz.

Previous work had already identified multiple strike-slip faults for the magnitude-8.6 earthquake, but no other study had analyzed the slip amounts in such detail. Beroza says that Lay and his team ?do a splendid job of picking apart this very important earthquake? in their paper.

Lasting impressions
Although much attention has focused on how the earthquakes played out, some researchers are also studying the after-effects of the giant tremor. In a third study, scientists found that for six days following the event, earthquakes of magnitude 5.5 and greater occurred at almost five times their normal rate all around the world.

?Aftershocks are usually restricted to the immediate vicinity of a main shock,? says lead author Fred Pollitz, a geophysicist at the US Geological Survey in Menlo Park, California. He says that the 11 April example should challenge conventional definitions of how soon and how close aftershocks can occur to large earthquakes.

?Every earthquake is important to study, but this earthquake is rather unique,? says Hiroo Kanamori, a seismologist at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. With so many unusual characteristics to examine, the 11 April earthquake sequence may continue for some time to expand researchers? ideas of how earthquakes can occur.

This article is reproduced with permission from the magazine Nature. The article was first published on September 26, 2012.

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/click.phdo?i=16826bd19df90a89b9fb47eaa3f4ac9e

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Housewives Legal Bust! Richard Wakile Loses Court Case, Ordered ...

WENN

By Alexis Tereszcuk - Radar Entertainment Editor

You?re not a Real Housewives family if you haven?t been taken to court!

Kathy Wakile?s husband Richard joins Teresa and Joe Giudice as another The Real Housewives of New Jersey cast member who has been sued and lost in court, RadarOnline.com has exclusively learned.

Richard Wakile was taken to small claims court in Passaic County, NJ by Natural Paradise Landscaping over a $2,000 unpaid bill, and the judge ruled against him in court on Monday.

PHOTOS: Celebrity Cheaters

Louie Khalil, the owner of the landscaping company, exclusively told RadarOnline.com about the settlement the judge ordered Richard to pay.

?I don?t care about the money; I'm just glad the judge saw the truth," Khalil said.

According to Louie, he was hired by the Wakiles to do the landscaping at their house and performed the services for a full year and was never paid, so he cut their service off in October 2011.

PHOTOS: Brandi Glanville Out To Dinner In West Hollywood

?I saw him and told him to pay the bills, we kept asking him to pay, we sent him the bill and when we would call him he would just say ?f**king sue me? and hang up on me," he claimed.

?He would say to me ?Who the f**k do you think you are? I?ll smash your face if I ever hear you say ask me for money again.??

Louie said Richard was harassing him while he was working on other jobs in the neighborhood, and on June 8, 2012 ?came to my truck while I was working, invading my private space. He took pictures of my license plate so I called the cops. They went to his house and told him not to take pictures of my license plate.?

PHOTOS: DC Housewife Makes Out With New Lover

He told RadarOnline.com it was after this incident that he decided to file the lawsuit and it worked out in his favor.

The judge ruled on September 24 that Richard was responsible for part of the bill and ordered him to pay $792.34 plus $22 in court fees. Louie said Richard cut them a check for an even $815 right after the judge ordered him to pay.

PHOTOS: Real Housewife LuAnn Keynote Speaker At NYU Nursing School

When Richard was spotted in the courthouse for the first hearing on September 19 by Tom Murro, he was evasive on Twitter about the reason he was there, writing: ?I'm so afraid that you've exposed me!!! Shaking in my boots, or in my beach wear!!!?

Richard actually filed a counter lawsuit against Louie Khalil and the company, which the judge threw out in court on Monday.

Louie told RadarOnline.com that he?s sure he?ll see Richard again in the neighborhood and he?s ready for when he does.?If I see him I?m just going to smile at him when I see him. I don?t care.? He can walk away,? he said.

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Inside The Glamorous Life Of Bethenny Frankel: Pizza, Poop And Fries

PHOTOS: "Real Housewives": Best or Bust?

Source: http://www.radaronline.com/exclusives/2012/09/richard-wakile-lawsuit-landscaping-debt-real-housewives-new-jersey

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Virgin America Announces 2nd Quarter 2012 Results ? Civil ...

Quoting ROSWELL41 (Thread starter): VX has posted a $4 million loss for the quarter. Unfortunate for what is supposed to be one of the strongest quarters of the year for airlines in general. Very disappointing considering that even bankrupt AMR posted an operating profit and a better net margin -- even including bankruptcy reorganization expenses! Load factor was down 3.2 points year-over-year and RASM declined 2 percent even as peer JetBlue's RASM increased 6 percent with a load factor increase of 3.8 points. The decrease in CASM was almost entirely attributable to lower fuel costs and longer average stage length. The exit scenario for Branson and the "U.S. investors" is an IPO, but these numbers won't support an IPO in the next 12 months unless Q3 is a complete blow-out -- and I don't think the macroeconomic environment supports that.

This would support the rumor that investors are losing patience. The key metrics are headed in the wrong direction. VX caters too much to the price sensitive customer looking for an exciting experience and not the loyal business traveler expecting first class upgrades etc. The long stage length of flights isn't helping either. Best of luck but I don't see VX having a bright future in this form.

Another fantastic quarter I dont see how that model can work in this economy?

I love the spin...$4M.... Now if we dig slightly deeper and don't read the Virgin America corporate koolaid and we look at the REAL numbers....Another $31M loss for the quarter...up $10M from last year. And for the year....$107M loss....just ever so slightly above their $66M loss a year before. People, these are not good numbers. But there is nothing to see here...Doing great...Keep on keepin' on.

Quoting SuperDash (Reply 4): But there is nothing to see here...Doing great...Keep on keepin' on. If AMR can turn it around, VX can turn it around too!?

While I detest Virgin America and its old school 1800's robber baron style origin story, i will grant them that showing an operational profit is the first key to sucess. Won't keep you alive, but that "$4M" is atleast close... You are right though, investors will want to see much more from a company as small and as middle aged as Virgin America has become. Can't play the startup card anymore with the money folks, yet its not a large established airline that shaving a few % here and there can suddenly start putting hundreds of millions in the bank.

I think the doomsayers are just loving this but you dont invest in the airline business expecting short term return. VX is clearly on a 10 year model and i think they are progressing nicely. All figures point to getting closer to their goal each time. The PRESS RELEASE is just that but theres alot more to the VX story than what the posters above have detracted from it so i feel the entire post needs to be visible. SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 24, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Virgin America today reported its financial results for the second quarter of 2012. Total operating revenue for the second quarter grew by 29 percent to $347 million on a capacity increase of 32 percent. The Company narrowed its operating loss to $4 million for the second quarter, and improved earnings before interest, depreciation and amortization, and aircraft rental expense (EBITDAR) by 44 percent, to a record high of $54 million. EBITDAR margin for the second quarter rose to 16 percent, a 1.7 point year-over-year improvement. Year-to-date Virgin America reported total revenue of $614 million ? a 31 percent increase year-over-year. Operating loss for the six months ended June 30, 2012, was $53 million. Year-to-date the Company has achieved EBITDAR of $61 million, an improvement of 23 percent over the first six months of 2011. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20090123/VIRGINAMERICALOGO) In the second year of an unprecedented capacity growth cycle, Virgin America's unit revenue (RASM) declined a modest 2 percent as compared to the second quarter of 2011. Over the past two years, the airline has increased available seat miles (ASM) by 72 percent with an 11 percent increase in RASM. The Company took delivery of one aircraft during the second quarter, ending the quarter with a total fleet of 52 Airbus A320 Family aircraft. The airline has taken delivery of 24 aircraft total since the first quarter of 2010. This rapid growth established Virgin America's core network and provided an important base for the carrier's future success. This phase of accelerated growth is now largely complete, as Virgin America will take delivery of just one additional aircraft through the second quarter of 2013. Cost per available seat mile (CASM) excluding fuel decreased by 1.5 percent, despite the cost pressures of growth, reflecting the benefits of economies of scale that Virgin America will see as growth slows. Fuel costs during the quarter averaged $3.40 per gallon ? a decrease of 3.4 percent year-over-year, although the quarter was still one of the highest cost periods in Virgin America's history. Virgin America maintains a hedging program to manage the volatility of fuel prices and provide some protection from short-term price increases. As of June 30, the Company has hedged 58 percent of its expected fuel consumption for the rest of 2012, and 30 percent for the first half of 2013. "With improved margins in the second quarter, our investment in building our network over the past two years is beginning to pay off," said Virgin America President and CEO David Cush. "Despite the economic climate and the historic rise in fuel costs faced since our launch, as a new carrier we needed to grow. After two years of record expansion, we're pleased to have built a strong foundation and to have delivered on our promise of offering the best product in the domestic skies. With just one aircraft delivery in the next twelve months, we will focus on maximizing the value of our network instead of managing additional growth. As we enter this period of slower growth, we expect the investment in our core network to continue to provide improved financial results." In the 12 months ending in June 2012, Virgin America launched new service to Puerto Vallarta, Palm Springs, Philadelphia, and Portland. Since its 2007 launch, the airline has created 2,600 new jobs, expanded to 19 airport destinations, signed up 2.5 million Elevate? members and swept the reader-based travel awards, including "Best Domestic Airline" in Conde Nast Traveler's Readers' Choice Awards and Travel + Leisure's World's Best Awards. As one of the few expanding U.S. airlines, Virgin America grew by 513 teammates year-over-year for the quarter. Top Line Second Quarter Reporting Highlights: Operating results: The airline reported an operating loss of $4 million in the second quarter on revenues of $347 million ? a 32 percent improvement year-over-year. Load factor: Revenue passenger miles increased 27 percent on a 32 percent increase in capacity, resulting in a second quarter load factor of 80 percent ? a three point load factor decrease for the quarter year-over-year. Top line progress: Revenue in the second quarter was up 29 percent versus second quarter 2011. RASM decreased by two percent year-over-year. Cost control: Operating expense per available seat mile excluding fuel (ex-fuel CASM) decreased by 2 percent in the quarter, reflecting the economies of scale from the Company's growth over the past year. Cash: The airline ended the quarter with $82 million in unrestricted cash. This year, Virgin America reached the threshold to be classified a major carrier for reporting purposes by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) and as such began reporting its on-time performance, baggage handling and other key operational statistics to the DOT monthly. For the second quarter of 2012, Virgin America achieved an 85.2 percent cumulative on-time performance, placing the carrier seventh for on-time performance among all reporting major U.S. carriers for the quarter. The airline's baggage handling rate for the first six months of 2012 was 0.88 mishandled baggage reports per 1000 guests, which placed it first among all reporting U.S. carriers for baggage reliability for the first half of 2012. Key milestones achieved in the second quarter of 2012 include: In June 2012, the airline inaugurated service to Portland International Airport (PDX) from both San Francisco International Airport (SFO) and Los Angeles International Airport (LAX); In June 2012, the airline opened a new flight training facility with a state-of-the-art Required Navigational Performance (RNP)-certified CAE Airbus A320 full-flight simulator? the first such pilot training facility of its kind in Northern California; In May 2012, the airline launched ticket sales on its new Washington Reagan National (DCA) nonstop flight from SFO, after receiving DOT approval to operate the route; In May 2012,Virgin America, Virgin Atlantic Airways and Virgin Australia, announced a first of its kind joint entertainment, digital and out-of-home advertising campaign to celebrate the unique Virgin in-flight experience and mark the airlines' global frequent flyer partnership ? which went live earlier in the spring of 2012; In April 2012, Virgin America launched its first flights to Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) from SFO and LAX; In June 2012, Virgin America applied with DOT for its first codeshare agreement with Virgin Australia, which went live in July; Virgin America added Japan Airlines as an interline partner in June, further expanding the airline's reach. Virgin America has implemented multiple interline partnerships in the first half of 2012. The airline now has 17 interline partners total. Virgin America flies to San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, Washington D.C. (IAD and DCA), Seattle, Las Vegas, San Diego, Boston, Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Dallas-Fort Worth, Los Cabos, Cancun, Chicago, Puerto Vallarta, Palm Springs (seasonally), Philadelphia and Portland. Although a privately held company, Virgin America is announcing these earnings results in advance of the DOT quarterly reports. PR Newswire (http://s.tt/1odXk)

This airline's financial performance has gone from bad to worse....I just don't see light at the end of the tunnel

Quoting NWADTWE16 (Reply 7): I think the doomsayers are just loving this but you dont invest in the airline business expecting short term return. VX is clearly on a 10 year model and i think they are progressing nicely. All figures point to getting closer to their goal each time. No investor would willingly pour money into an aviation start-up whose business plan didn't forecast any kind of returns until the 10th year. VX can't show any trending data that suggests they are moving closer to profitability; if anything, it's the opposite. One number may look better in one quarter, but every time, another number suffers (i.e., CASM, RASM, etc).

look VX havent made a profit sense it began how long can they keep it up

Quoting NWADTWE16 (Reply 7): The Company took delivery of one aircraft during the second quarter And only one more to come in the next year. So much for growth spreading out costs. Their CASM is as low as it's going to go.

Quoting NWADTWE16 (Reply 7): Cost per available seat mile (CASM) excluding fuel decreased by 1.5 percent, despite the cost pressures of growth, reflecting the benefits of economies of scale that Virgin America will see as growth slows. Does VX management actually think people will believe this statement? The "cost pressures of growth" are generally DOWNWARD -- because fixed costs like back-office staff, I.T. systems, executive pay, marketing, etc. can be spread over more customers and tickets, because the new employees hired in to support that growth start at the bottom of the pay scale, and because the new aircraft entering the fleet enjoy a maintenance holiday for the first several years. As growth slows, VX will NOT see improved economies of scale; rather their labor & maintenance unit costs will increase. Quoting NWADTWE16 (Reply 7): "With improved margins in the second quarter, our investment in building our network over the past two years is beginning to pay off," The margins didn't improve because of their "investment in building [the] network." Their margins improved because fuel was less expensive. If fuel costs had stayed level, their operating margin would have been worse than in 2Q2011 at -2.6% vs -2.2%. The EBITDAR number is specious since you can't run the airline without planes and their fleet costs nearly $20 million/month to rent. EBITDAR is up $17 million largely because aircraft rent was up $14 million and fuel was down $5 million. Quoting NWADTWE16 (Reply 7): VX is clearly on a 10 year model and i think they are progressing nicely. VX is not on a "10 year model." They've been planning for an IPO this year or next -- but a net loss of $108 million for the fist six months of this year won't support an IPO in 2013, either.

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Source: http://www.airliners.net/aviation-forums/general_aviation/read.main/5572239/

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Obama: Libya assault 'wasn't just mob action'

NEW YORK (AP) ? President Barack Obama said Monday "there's no doubt" that the assault of the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya, that killed four Americans including the U.S. ambassador "wasn't just a mob action" but a sign of extremism in nations lacking stability. His words about the Libya killings were his most specific since the White House called it a "terrorist attack" last week.

"What's been interesting, just this past week, there were these massive protests against these extremists militias that are suspected, maybe, of having been involved in this attack," Obama said during the taping of an interview on ABC's talk show program "The View."

The White House initially said the storming of the consulate attack was a spontaneous assault tied to ongoing protests over a video that ridiculed the Prophet Muhammad, but has since broadened its answer to say an investigation will show what ultimately happened.

Obama and first lady Michelle Obama taped the show ? a clear pitch to women voters ? in New York the day before the president addresses the U.N. General Assembly. The interview, a mix of policy, politics and personal tidbits, will air Tuesday. Obama made a solo appearance on "The View" in July 2010, drawing an estimated 6.5 million viewers, according to Nielsen. The first lady appeared on the show in late May, where she discussed family life and the re-election campaign.

Asked if a Mitt Romney presidency would be a disaster, Obama hardly disagreed with the sentiment, replying that the nation can "survive a lot." He added: "The American people don't want to just survive, we want to thrive."

Obama pointed to Romney's assertion that it is fair for a person with a $50,000-a-year income to pay a higher percentage of their earnings in taxes than someone who makes millions from investments. Romney said a low capital gains tax rate encourages economic growth and encourages people to invest.

"I've just got a different vision about how we grow our economy," Obama said, adding that such growth is faster when the middle class is doing well.

Discussing the stresses of the presidency, the first lady described her husband as having an even temperament. "He doesn't have emotional shifts; he's very steady," she said. "I'm one of the few people who can really make him mad."

Asked how, Obama joked: "By being thoroughly unreasonable."

In recalling his hardest day of the last four years, Obama cited the August 2011 downing of a Chinook helicopter by a rocket-propelled grenade in Afghanistan that killed 30 American troops. Obama later flew to Dover, Del., to pay tribute to the troops.

"It's very raw in those moments and it reminds you that freedom's not free and these families are taking enormous strain and ours troops are making enormous sacrifices," Obama said.

Asked what they will be doing in about five years, Michelle Obama said, "go on a long vacation," adding that she wants to retrace the couple's honeymoon route along California's scenic Route 1.

The president at first objected, saying there is still an election ahead, with a whole set of goals he wants to accomplish in a second term. After the presidency, Obama said, he expects to spend time working with kids.

"I love teaching. I miss teaching," he said. Still, the former law school professor said he is not sure he will return to the classroom.

Instead, he may explore the idea of going around to cities, creating mentorships and "giving young people" a sense of opportunity and possibility, Obama said.

An avid basketball player and occasional coach to his two daughters, Obama was asked what was harder, coaching girls or getting Congress to work.

"No contest," he replied. "The girls? They play like a team."

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/obama-libya-assault-wasnt-just-mob-action-210746598.html

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4Moms Begins Shipping The Breeze Baby Crib

Get thee to the 4Mommery because if you're the parent of an infant/toddler, you have got to get you one of these. This is the smoothest, nicest playpen ever made by a home robotics company ever in the history of playpens, which is saying a lot. As I mentioned here, this is on TechCrunch because it's one of the purest examples of an excellent product by a small hardware startup with a proven track record.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/sY02yrzIR1c/

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Apple Supplier Halts Production After Violence in Chinese Factory (Voice Of America)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories Stories, RSS Feeds and Widgets via Feedzilla.

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Samsung Galaxy Ace 2 reportedly headed to Virgin Mobile in Canada

Since being unveiled a long, long time ago, the Galaxy Ace 2 has seen its younger S III brother grab all the praising headlines -- oh, and we can say the same about its other bodacious, note-friendly sibling. Still, we have a feeling some Canadian Virgin Mobile customers would welcome one of Sammy's lesser-specced family members with open arms hands. Well, according to MobileSyrup, the Ace 2 is exactly what folks using the prepaid carrier can expect come this holiday season, making the trip across the Atlantic with a rumored contract-free price tag of somewhere between $200 to $250. To give you a quick refresh, this Gingerbread handset boasts a 3.7-inch, HVGA display, a humble dual-core, 800MHz CPU alongside 768MB of RAM, 4GB of built-in storage and a decent 1,500mAh battery. We should be hearing more detailed info in the coming weeks, but while we wait for that, you could always revise our hands-on meeting with the Ace 2.

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile

Samsung Galaxy Ace 2 reportedly headed to Virgin Mobile in Canada originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 23 Sep 2012 02:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Multi-Media Titans: Vello Virkhaus on Amon ... - Art Digital Magazine

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Source: http://www.artdigitalmagazine.com/?p=3357

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Pilar's Classroom: Food and Drink

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Source: http://pilarsclassroom.blogspot.com/2012/09/food-and-drink.html

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Bomb threats give university campuses scare

?

Since last Friday, a string of false bomb threats have been made to four universities in the United States ? the University of Texas at Austin, North Dakota State University, Hiram College and Louisiana State University ? all resulting in temporary campus evacuations.

At UT, a bomb threat was called in at 8:35 a.m. on Sept. 14 by a man claiming to be a member of al-Qaida, according to UT President?s Office spokesperson Gary Susswein. Susswein said the campus of 50,000 students and 20,000 faculty was notified to evacuate at 9:50 a.m., 10 minutes before the caller had said bombs would go off. An all-clear was issued before noon.

An evacuation order sent via text to all students read, ?Evacuation due to threats on campus. Immediately evacuate all buildings. Get as far away from the buildings as possible. Further information to come.?

UT junior Katie Martin said she was concerned about the administration?s decision to wait so long before issuing an evacuation and also of the vagueness about the cause of the evacuation.

?Although the threat was not carried out, the campus should have been informed sooner as to what the situation was and just how serious it was,? Martin said. ?The texts were urgent, but not very descriptive, and because of this, I think a lot of people were unsure of how crucial the evacuation actually was.?

Victoria Cheng, a junior who was off campus the day of the bomb threat, also said she was concerned about the vague nature of the emergency text.

?It was weird that they weren?t being specific about what the threat was,? Cheng said. ?I found out that it was a bomb threat on the news later.?

Susswein said the university administration is evaluating its response to the incident in order to better its evacuation plan.

?Whenever we have an incident of this level, we evaluate what was done right and what can be improved,? Susswein said. ?Student safety is our number one priority.?

Despite their concerns, both Cheng and Martin said they trust the decisions made by the UT administration.

?I still feel safe here at UT,? Martin said. ?Some might be frustrated, but I think the university?s actions always had the students? best interests in mind.?

A similar situation occurred at LSU on Sept. 17. The university received a call saying there was a bomb on campus, according to the Times-Picayune. An evacuation order was issued at 11:32 a.m. via text, email and website update.

Unlike the situation at UT, LSU explicitly mentioned the bomb threat in its emergency message, which read, ?A bomb threat has been reported on the LSU campus. Please evacuate as calmly and quickly as possible.?

LSU junior Moriah Purdy said there was a lot of confusion and frustration, but not necessarily fear or panic, as an estimated 30,000 students all tried to leave the campus at once. Buses were packed, and traffic quickly came to a standstill.

?People initially thought it was a joke, [so] they weren?t going to leave until everyone around them started leaving,? Purdy said. ?No one seemed scared, but we all called [our] parents to update them on the situation.?

Investigations by law enforcement led to the arrest of a suspect, William Bouvay Jr., late Tuesday night. Bouvay, a Baton Rouge resident, does not have any connection to LSU, nor do authorities believe he was responsible for the other three bomb threats, according to the Times-Picayune.

At Rice University, the Crisis Management Team would be responsible for handling an incident such as a bomb threat, according to Rice University Police Department Chief Johnny Whitehead. The team, which is chaired by Vice President of Administrative Affairs Kevin Kirby, includes members from RUPD and the Environmental Health and Safety Department, plus representatives from facilities around campus.

In response to the recent string of bomb threats, Whitehead said the Crisis Management Team will be distributing a comprehensive checklist to the campus community detailing what to do in the case of receiving a bomb threat call.

The Crisis Management Team?s checklist will be based off of the Bomb Threat Call Procedure published on the Department of Homeland Security?s website. The procedure includes a list of questions for the person receiving the call to ask the caller, as well as a checklist of details to pay attention to, such as background noises and the caller?s voice.

Exact evacuation plans depend on the type of incident. For example, the Crisis Management Team would decide whether it was necessary to evacuate all or only part of the campus, according to Whitehead.

Source: http://www.ricethresher.org/bomb-threats-give-university-campuses-scare-1.2907431

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Study by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute-affiliate, Massachusetts General Hospital...

Study finds factors that contribute to solid stress within tumors - National Cancer Institute

www.cancer.gov

A Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) research team has identified factors that contribute to solid stress within tumors, suggesting possible ways to alleviate it, and has developed a simple way to measure such pressures.

Source: http://www.facebook.com/NCImedia/posts/246622392127202

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Congress exits Washington to hit campaign trail

Speaker of the House John Boehner, R-Ohio, smiles as he leaves a news conference as Congress prepares to shut down until after the elections in November, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Friday, Sept. 21, 2012. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Speaker of the House John Boehner, R-Ohio, smiles as he leaves a news conference as Congress prepares to shut down until after the elections in November, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Friday, Sept. 21, 2012. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Speaker of the House John Boehner, R-Ohio, meets with reporters as Congress prepares to shut down until after the elections in November, on Capitol Hill in Washington, Friday, Sept. 21, 2012. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? The most partisan, least productive Congress in memory is bolting Washington for the campaign trail, leaving in its wake a pile of unfinished business on the budget and taxes, farm policy and legislation to save the Postal Service from insolvency.

The GOP-controlled House beat its retreat Friday morning after one last, futile slap at President Barack Obama ? passing a bill called the "Stop the War on Coal Act."

In the Senate, Majority Leader Harry Reid delayed that chamber's getaway to force a post-midnight procedural vote on legislation by endangered Democrat Jon Tester of Montana to boost access to public lands for hunting and fishing.

The main item of Senate business was to clear a six-month spending bill needed to prevent a government shutdown at the end of the month.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2012-09-21-US-Congress-Making-Its-Getaway/id-7025291f5a1e4423b32e6d129993786e

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Prosecutors give up fight for James Holmes' notebook

AP

Shooting suspect James Holmes, in an undated photo released Sept. 20 by the Arapahoe County Sheriff's Office. Holmes has been shorn of the dyed-red hair he had when first arrested.

By NBC News staff and news services

Prosecutors in the case against James Holmes gave up their pursuit of the notebook Holmes mailed to his psychiatrist before the July 20 theater massacre in which 12 were killed and at least 58 were wounded, the Denver Post reported Thursday. ?

In a hearing at the Arapahoe County Courthouse on Thursday morning, prosecutors said they weren't going to pursue the notebook now because the debate could delay proceedings for months and they were likely to gain access to it as the case goes forward.

"There's a high degree of likelihood that whatever privilege exists in the notebook will end up being waived by the defendant" should Holmes' lawyers pursue an insanity defense, prosecutor Rich Orman said during hearing on the issue, Reuters reported.

---

The notebook purportedly contains descriptions and drawings of a violent attack.

Holmes, a former neuroscience graduate student at the University of Colorado, is accused of opening fire on the audience at a midnight showing of the Batman movie "The Dark Knight Rises" on July 20 in Aurora, Colo. He is also accused of wiring his apartment with an elaborate system of explosives and tripwires, with apparent intent to kill first responders and other residents in the building.

Appearing in court?on Thursday, Holmes' head had been shaved of the garishly colored red hair he had in previous court appearances, the Post reported.

In earlier proceedings, Arapahoe County District Judge William B. Sylvester denied prosecutors access to the notebook, ruling that they could not disprove a doctor-patient relationship between Holmes and Lynne Fenton, a psychiatrist at University of Colorado. Sylvester had scheduled Thursday's hearing to take up the issue again.

Court documents related to James Holmes' case

Attorneys for Holmes argue that their client is mentally ill and was seeking Fenton's help. At the last hearing, the judge rejected prosecutor arguments that a privileged doctor-patient relationship ended June 11, the last time Fenton saw Holmes.

Holmes has been charged with 142 counts, including murder and attempted murder.

Prosecutors are seeking to charge Holmes with 10 more counts, the Denver Port reported, citing a motion filed earlier this week.

They also filed a motion to amend 17 counts against Holmes, the Post reported. Details were not released because a gag order is in place.

In related news, the memorial that sprang up outside the Aurora theater after the bloodshed was disassembled Thursday, the Denver Post reported. The city said it had consulted?with families of the victims and that a local museum would be archiving items from the display, the report said.

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Source: http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/09/20/13988740-prosecutors-give-up-fight-for-colorado-shooting-suspect-james-holmes-notebook?lite

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Can religion save Africa's elephants and rhinos?

NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) ? Standing before a pile of charred elephant ivory as dusk covered the surrounding savannah, Christian, Muslim and Hindu religious leaders grasped hands and prayed. Let religion, they asked, help "God's creatures" to survive.

Poachers are escalating their assault on Africa's elephants and rhinos, and conservationists warn that the animals cannot survive Asia's high-dollar demand for ivory tusks and rhino horn powder. Some wildlife agents, customs officials and government leaders are being paid off by what is viewed as a well-organized mafia moving animal parts from Africa to Asia, charge the conservationists.

Seeing a dire situation grow worse, the animal conservation group WWF is enlisting religious leaders to take up the cause in the hopes that religion can help save some of the world's most majestic animals.

"We are the ones who are driving God's creatures to extinction," said Martin Palmer, secretary-general of the Britain-based Alliance of Religions and Conservation.

Palmer spoke during Thursday evening's prayer at a site in Nairobi National Park where Kenyan officials burned hundreds of ivory tusks in 1989 to draw attention to the slaughter of elephants. Although the park has no elephants, it hosts 221 rhinos.

"We are the ones who can change the way Africa works," Palmer said.

Dekila Chungyalpa, the director of WWF's Sacred Earth program, argues that the killing of elephants, rhinos and Asian tigers ? the three animals WWF is most concerned about ? is a moral issue. She said that conservationists are not doing well enough getting the anti-poaching message across, and that new strategies ? such as religion ? must be tried.

"Faith leaders are the heart and backbone of local communities. They guide and direct the way we think, behave and live our lives," she said, adding later: "I think this is the missing piece in conservation strategies. ... WWF can yell us much as we want and no one will listen to us, but a religious leader can say 'This is not a part of our values. This is immoral.'"

Three dozen religious leaders from nine African countries toured Nairobi National Park on Thursday, where they saw rhinos, zebras, buffalo and ostriches all within site of the skyline of Kenya's capital city.

One of the safari vans held a Christian, a Hindu, a Muslim and a Buddhist, which spawned efforts to create some sort of wildlife-themed religious joke. During a more serious conversation, Hamza Mutunu, a Muslim leader from Tanzania, argued for the animals.

"The general message is that taking care of the wildlife is part and parcel with our religion," he said. "We have a duty from the Prophet Mohammed. ... Taking care of wildlife is within our religion."

Preetika Bhanderi, who is with the Hindu Council of Africa, said: "Hindu's backbone is non-violence toward everything that has life. That means animals, and people, of course."

Charles Odira, a Catholic priest from Kenya, said religious leaders can help spread the message effectively given the moral authority and standing they have in African communities.

"Just as when we talk about Jesus Christ, when we say (from the pulpit) that animals are part of God's community, an impact will be made," he said.

Odira acknowledged the uphill fight even religious leaders have. Poachers can earn hundreds or even thousands of dollars for a rhino horn or elephant tusk. That money represents far more than they could earn after years of labor in the typical village job.

Mutunu, though, said that religious leaders of all faiths came together in Loliondo, Tanzania last year to fight against poaching. He said the effort has yielded dividends.

The poaching numbers are grim. The number of rhinos killed by poachers in South Africa has risen from 13 in 2007 to 448 last year, WWF says. Last year saw more large-scale ivory seizures than any year in the last two decades, it said. Tens of thousands of elephants are being killed by poachers each year.

It's not known what kind of impact religious leaders may be able to make, but Mike Watson, the chief executive of the Kenya's Lewa Wildlife Conservancy, said he and other conservationists will take any help they can get. Lewa saw one of its rhinos killed by poachers last week. The park had never suffered a rhino poaching death before 2009; it's had five of its rhinos killed since then.

"We know for a fact that one of the demands for ivory is religious icons in the Far East, and if pressure can be brought to bear to reduce that demand both locally here in Kenya through assistance by religious leaders, and overseas, it can only be a good step," he said. "It might take generations. If religious leaders can some way speed that process up, all well and good, but all efforts need to be on the table."

Africa is the supply side of the poaching equation, but the demand comes from Asia. Chungyalpa said WWF is working with Buddhists in Southeast Asia to try to educate Asian consumers about ivory and rhino horn powder. Yao Ming, the oversized basketball star from China, visited Kenya last month to raise awareness and make a film called "The End of the Wild."

Chungyalpa compared the effort to enlist religious leaders in the anti-poaching fight to how religious pressure helped end the era of apartheid in South Africa.

"There has to be a rising up of moral outrage," she said. "This is the spirit we're after."

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/religion-save-africas-elephants-rhinos-133918576.html

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Geochemical Software Applications For Environmental Protection

Over the past couple of years, environmental preservation has been in the spotlight. Topics ranging from global warming melting the polar ice caps to ways for minimizing carbon footprints have been topics in many media outlets. The 'green revolution' has begun. Geochemical software played a role in helping visualize the collected data in order to come to the conclusion that the Earth could be in trouble.

Most people are unaware of the different types of computer programs which are used in collecting ecological data. Technological advances provide full programs or ArcGIS extensions for just about any ecology based project. These programs help to keep track of, sort, and plot statistical data that could influence any living organism. These programs can help visualize changes in the terrain, natural resources, or other environmental conditions.

Changes in terrain may not seem important. However, even something seemingly as small as vanishing riverbank foliage has an impact upon the ecosystem. It can cause one species to move to another area. This could then upset the delicate balance of flora and fauna with in the area. This has happened many times in certain areas of the world. Humans have often reintroduced an organism to its natural habitat in an attempt to reverse negative changes to the environment.

Soil types can also help categorize plant life. Some plants grow better in certain types of soil. These soil types obtained through the use of geological software can help to allocate land. Land allocation is important to food supply . If a certain type of edible plant can be grown on the land, but the farmer is unaware of this fact and plants something that can't thrive in the location hunger could ensue. Even changes in elevations may cause an entire species to be wiped out or flooding. All of these can be monitored in an effort to reduce the overall effect they may have.

Protection of terrain by using geophysical software could be important in environmental protection. However, more than what you can see often needs to be protected. Monitoring the toxin levels of landfills and other waste management locations may be important to many organisms, not just humans. If the toxins were to reach underground or above ground pure water sources it could cause sickness or worse.

Underground resources are mapped and monitored using computer programs. Finding new water or oil reservoirs and accessing them without harming the environment or causing contamination by using 3D modeling programs is often helpful. One oil spill can cause massive damage to ecosystems and livelihoods. Mapping software and correct data analysis can help to prevent any mishaps.

Sometimes underground materials rise to the surface. Like when a volcano erupts. Thermal imaging and subsurface mapping can monitor these areas so that any residents within the eruption zone can be evacuated before too much damage is done.

The use of geochemical software in many ways helps to protect our environment. It can be used to track, sort, and plot important information correctly and easily. This information could be useful in prolonging or preserving the life of a species or an ecosystem by helping to maintain delicate balances of both flora and fauna.

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Geo Chemical software that is used in the worlds largest and most successful energy companies.
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Source: http://www.articlesbd.com/articles/246882/1/Geochemical-Software-Applications-For-Environmental-Protection/Page1.html

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